Race for the Cure moving from Germantown to Collierville

About 14,000 people gathered to participate in the Susan G. Komen Race for The Cure in Germantown in 2012. This year's race will be moved to Collierville.

The Susan G. Komen Race for the Cure, an autumn mainstay in Germantown since it began 20 years ago, is moving to Collierville for this year's event the last Saturday in October.

Elaine Hare, executive director of the Susan G. Komen organization's Memphis-Midsouth affiliate, confirmed the move Wednesday, saying the new location will be in the Carriage Crossing shopping center near Houston Levee and Bill Morris Parkway. She said the shopping center and the Town of Collierville approached them about the move and will be major sponsors at the new location.

"This is a good thing," Hare said of the move, citing more space, better access and a larger shopping center than the Germantown site at the Shops of Saddle Creek.

Susan Eads, general manager of Carriage Crossing, said Wednesday afternoon that the relocation not only will benefit the race, but also the 60 stores in the center. She said with the local Komen group now serving 14 counties in Tennessee and seven in Mississippi, it means more customers.

"Those are people who may have never been here before," she said.

Germantown City Administrator Patrick Lawton said the city was disappointed in the decision, but he understood from talking to Hare that organizers wanted a larger venue for the event in hopes of gaining more participants and more sponsors.

"We liked having the race here. It was a great event for the city," Lawton said, later adding: "If they can (raise more money) there, then that's probably the right decision for them."

The race, which last year drew about 15,000 participants, began 20 years ago in Germantown as an event to raise funds for breast cancer awareness. Molly Meisenheimer, a breast cancer survivor, was the leader of the event.

Over the years, the race continued to grow, at times causing logistical problems, such as access to the site in the middle of Germantown and issues with shuttling runners to the race area.

In recent years, frustrated participants stood at shuttle pickup points until well after the start of the race.

Hare said the larger Carriage Crossing property will provide more parking (about 3,700 spaces across 93 acres) for participants and better access, particularly when Tenn. 385 is complete from Macon to Poplar, finishing the interstate-type loop around the eastern edge of the county.

"It was like when you had your first home," Hare said. "You loved it, but eventually you needed a bigger home."

The race will use the Carriage Crossing lot for parking and be able to start the race an hour later — at 9 a.m. rather than 8 a.m. — benefiting the survivor's breakfast before the festivities.

"We were having the survivor's breakfast in the dark," she said.

Hare said the race offices and packet pickup location will remain in its current Germantown location at Carre Four.